Chapter 3
Video 5
Conservatism
Pre-chewed Politics
What is the New Right?
What economic and
social issues helped
make New Right ideas
more mainstream by the
1970s?
Why is the New Right
often described as a
combination of two
separate ideologies?
Why did Friedrich Hayek
criticise the rational
constructivism of One
Nation conservatism?
What was Hayek’s idea
of spontaneous order
and what was its appeal
to New Right
conservatives?
Why did Hayek believe
state economic
intervention to be so
harmful?
The economic and social issues that helped make the new right ideas more mainstream by
the 1970s were that the economy was stagnating and there was increasing unemployment
rates, and inflation was rising as well.
The new right is often described as a combination of neo liberalism and neo conservatism.
This is because they believe in free markets. Reduced public spending, low taxes and
deregulation, which is what neo liberalist believe in. And they also believe in neo
conservative beliefs which are to maintain order, protect traditional institutions and values
patriotism.
Friedrich Hayek criticised the rational constructivism of one nation conservatism because
he argued that individuals or committees could never gather the incredible amount of
knowledge necessary to plan our vastly complicated world
The spontaneous order emerges from the interaction of free individuals. Hayek said
spontaneous order will emerge in our economy as individuals decided what they want to
buy, what they are willing to pay. Price signals tell where to allocate resources or what to
invest. This appeals to conservatives who are sceptical of human reason, and capacity to
plan. Spontaneous order will also emerge in culture through trial and error, and our own
conscience, we discover and evolve rules that help communities to thrive. This appeals to
conservative belief in tradition and pragmatic change.
Because it would disrupt the efficient signals sent by changing prices.
He argued that financial crises were not caused by a lack of state planning and support but
by too much. State intervention also disrupted the cultural rules that had spontaneously
formed to support a prosperous economy.
Chapter 3
Video 5
Conservatism
What are some examples
of Margaret Thatcher
neo-liberal reforms?
What arguments were
made to support these
policies?
What are some examples
of Margaret Thatcher‘s
neo-conservative
reforms?
What arguments were
made to support these
policies?
Why do some argue that
the neo-liberal and neoconservative elements of
the New Right were selfdefeating?
How did Thatcher
challenge these claims?
Why did she believe that
shrinking the state would
help to strengthen
society?
Pre-chewed Politics